Tray-supporting device



A. D. NIEMEYER.

TRAY SUPPORTING DEVICE.

APPLICATEON FILED MAR- 17, 1922. I

Patented Nov. 21, 1922.

2 SHEETSSHEET l.

EJ=L

A. D. NIEMEYER.

TRAY SUPPORTING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 17, 1922.

1,436,601 Patented Nov. 21, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Patented Nov. 21, 1922;

ALVIN D. NIEMEYER, OF DENISON, TEXAS.

TRAY-SUPPORTIN G DEVICE.

Application filed March 17, 1922. Serial No. 544,478.

To all whom it may concern:

4 Be it known that I, ALVIN D. NIEMEYER, a citizen of the United States .of America, residing. at Denison, in the county of Gray- 5 son and State of Texas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tray- Supporting Devices; and I do hereby declare that the following. is a full, clear, concise, and exact description of the inven- 10 tion, such as will enable others skilled in the art towhich it appertains to makeand use the same. Y

This invention relates to improvements in supporting devices, having for an object to provide a removable tray supporting bracket especially designed for use in connection with automobiles, whereby, when the same is attached to a portion of ,the vehicle, a refreshment tray or similar article may be firmly supported thereon in a position convenient to the vehicle occupants in order that its contents may be readily served without liability of accidental displacement or spilling.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a bracket of the character mentioned which may be adjusted to that extentneces- 1 sary to clampingly engage the attaching means with a seat back or door of the automobile, as may be desired.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a bracket capable of being adjusted to accommodate and firmly engage and support trays or similar articles of various sizes.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part ointed out hereinafter. 1

In or er that the invention and its mode of operation may be readilIyunderstood by persons skilled in. the art, I companyingillustra'tive drawings and in the detailed following description based thereon, set out one possible embodiment of the same.

In these drawings:

Figure 1 is aside elevation of the improved bracket showing the same attached to the back of the forwardseat of an automobile, the latter being shown in fragment;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the bracket when attached;

Figure 3 is a same;

Figure 4 is a transverse section taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 3 looking in the direction in which the arrows point;

bottom plan view of the the latter, if desired, being have in the ac-'- the extremities turned "to provide right angularly formed fingers 12 which I Figure 5 is a section taken on the line 5 5 of Figure 3 looking in the direction in which the arrows point; and,

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary detail showing the engagement of the catch .with the longitudinally adjustable attaching or clamping arm.

aying more particular reference to the drawings, in connection with which like characters of reference will designate corresponding parts throughout, the improved support may be stated to comprise a frame indicated in its entirety by the numeral 1,- the same being substantially rectangular in shape and being composed of parallel rods 2 rig dly inter-connected by means of transversely dlsposed strips 3 and 4, portions of said rods 2be1'n'g bent downwardly at substantially right angles and engaged with a substantially U-shaped member or jaw 5, provided with a covering of protective material, such as rubber tubing, fabric, et cet'era, whereby to prevent scarring of an adjacent surface.

As means for engaging and connecting thehaving the opposite end portions thereof,

downturned and apertured as at 8 is disposed transversely of said frame and has the intermediate portion thereof riveted or otherwise connected to the longitudinally disposed metal channel strip 9 connected ad j acent its opposite end portions to the intermediate portions of the transverse strips 3 and 4 as indicated at 10. Arms consisting of rods 11 are disposed longitudinally of the bracket bar 7 and as will be noted upon ref erence to the Figure 4, have the outer portions thereof slidingly passed through the apertured downturned ends 8 of said bar 7 of these arms 11 being upare adapted to be engaged over the marginal portions of the opposite ends of said tray 6 in the manner as shown in Figure 1, whereby connection between the same and the supporting bracket will be effected. In order, that the connection between the fingers 12 and the opposite end portions'of the tray 6 will be of a binding nature, expansible coiled springs 13 are arranged about portions of said rods or arms erably is secured being secured v such sliding 11 having certain of their ends bearing upon adjacent portions of tremity 8-, while the opposite ends of the same have bearing upon stops or abutments 14 slidingly arranged upon the inner portions of the respective rods 11 and having movement limited by means of cross pins 15 which are passed through any one of a series of openings 16 formed in said inner portions of the rods 11. Obviously, by reason of the adjustability of the stops 14 upon the inner portions of the rod 11, the relation of the fingers 12 formed upon their outer ends with res ect to the opposite ends of the bar 7 may varied, in order that the device may be adjusted to receive and positively engage trays or similar articles differing in size. To effect such adjustment of the arms or rods 11 and their fingers 12, it of course, is only necessary that the sliding abutments or stops 1 1- be moved to proper positions upon the inner portions of the rod 7 whereupon their respective cross pins 15 are passed through the adjacent openings 16. The expansible coiled spring 13 will serve to immediatelymove the fingers 12 inwardly to the limits of their adjust-- ment, while outward movement of the same will be permitted b reason of the interpositioning of these coiled springs.

An angle bracket 17 may be and prefto the intermediate portion of the bar 7 and is provided with spaced openings for slidingly receiving the inner portions of said rods therethrough for an obvious purpose.

To'efi'ect clamping attachment of the tray supporting bracket to a fixed portion of the automobile, as for illustration, the back of one of the seats thereof, indicated by the reference letter 8, the elongated ratchet 18 is provided, being disposed longitudinally of the frame 1 between the side rods 2 and slidabl engaged througha metal 100 19 secure to the inner end of the channe bar 9, while the'inner or free portion of said bar is slidably received between the opposite sides of the channel bar asindicated in the Figure 3. The outer or remaining end of the ratchet bar -18, is connected, through the medium of a transversely disposed strip 20 to the substantially U-shaped franieor jaw 21, the outer'ends of said strip 20 obviously, to the lateral extremities of said jaw 21 in a suitable manner. The 0- sitioning of the jaw 21 corresponds to t at of the jaw 5 and b reason of this opposed 1 be understood t at an clamp will be provided whereby the jaws 5. and 21 may be engaged with the opposite-sides of the seat, bac a arrangement, it wi and then adjusted with relation to each other to clampingly engage such back therebetween as shown in the igure 1.

To look the ratbhet bar 18 and in consethe' downturned ex-.

moved inwardlyl quence, the movable jaw 21 in an adjusted position with relation'to the frame 1 and the seat back 8, I may and preferably do provide a pawl 22 pivoting the same to an intermediate portion of the strip 4 as at 23 and so arranging the inner end of the same as to enga e in the adjacent pocket formed by the rate et teeth upon the bar 18. Toretain the inner end 'ofthe pawl 22 in temporary engagement with teeth of the ratchet bar 18, a contractile coiled spring 24 is provided and has one end thereof connected as at 25 to the adjacent end of the pawl 22 -while the opposite end of the same is conend of the spring actuated pawl 22.

In using the improved tray supporting bracket, the movable jaw .21 is adjusted with relation to the immovable jaw 5 to permit of its engagement over the seat backs or over a door of an automobile to be fitted therewith, whereupon said movable jaw is to efi'ect clamping engage-- ment between t e same and the seat back a, the spring actuated pawl 22 engaging 'between the adjacent teeth of the lon 'tudinally slidable ratchet bar 18 and t ereby securing said movable jaw 21 in its clamping position in order that the frame 1 will be supported in a substantially horizontal plane. Inasmuch as the immovable jaw 5 is formed upon one end of the rectangular frame 1, it is also to be appreciated'that the stability thereof willbe increased and that the more positive the engagement of the movable jaw 21 with the adjacent side of the seat back 8, the more firmly positioned will-be the frame 1.' At this time, a tray 6 is arranged upon the frame 1 and connected thereto by moving the fingers 12 outwardly in order that they will engage over the opposite end portions thereof, the springs 13 serving to retain said fingers into binding engagement with said opposite end portions of the same and thus positively locate the same in its supported position upon the frame 1. I

To remove the bracket from the seat back a, it isonly necessary to disengage the inner end of the pivotal pawl 22 with the ratchet bar 18 and move said ratchet bar 18 together with its, movable jaw ,21 out-o wardly so as to effect disengagement of the same with said seat back. he tray 6 may, too, be readily moved from the frame 1 and fingers 12 ofthe arms or rods 11 by pulling one of the same outwardly for a distance sufiicient to permit of disen age- ;nent of the adjacent end of the tray t ererom.

It is of courseto be understood that the mode of engagement of the tray supporting bracket may be varied such as conditions or preference may dictate as for example, the

jaws 5 and 21 may be engaged with the side i of the automobile body, with one of the doors thereof, or with any fixed 'or immovable portion of the same.

Manifestly, the construction shown is capable of considerable modification and such modification as is within the scope of my claims, I consider within the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

1. A device of the character described comprising a frame, consisting of interconnected longitudinal and transverse elements, certain of the ends of said lon itudinal elements being bent at right ang es to provide an immovable jaw, a movable jaw connected to and slidable with relation to said immovable jaw and tray attaching means arranged upon and secured to said frame.

2. A device of the character described comprising a frame including parallel side members having certain of the end portions thereof bent at substantially right angles to provide an immovable jaw, 'a movable jaw slidably connected to said frame and adjustable with relation to the immovable jaw, and relatively adjustable arms arranged transversely of and secured to said frame.

3. A device of the character described comprising a frame including arallel side members having portions t ereof bent downwardly to provide an immovable jaw, transverse elements inter-connecting said parallel. elements of the frame, an elon ratchet bar slidably engaging certain 0 saidted transverse elements, a, movable jaw carried upon the outer end of said ratchet bar cooperable with. said immovable jaw means for temporarily locking said ratchet bar with relation to the frame, and tray attaching means arranged upon and secured to the frame.

4, A device of the character described comprising a frame consisting of longitudinal and transverse interconnected elements, portions of said longitudinal elements being bent at substantially right angles to provide an immovable jaw, an elongated ratchet bar positioned intermediately of said longitudinal elements and extending coincident therewith, a movable jaw arranged upon the outer end of said ratchet, cooperable with said immovable jaw, means for temporarily locking said ratchet bar with relation to said frame, and yieldable tray clamping means arranged transversely of and secured to said frame.

5. A device of the character described comprising a frame consisting of longitudinal and transverse inter-connected elements, portions of said longitudinal elements being bent at substantially right angles to provide an immovable aw, a ratchet bar arranged between and slldable lon itudinally of said longitudinal elements, a ongitudinally disposed channel bar secured to said transverse elements receiving a portion of said ratchet bartherein, a "aw connected to the outer end of said rate at bar and cooperable with said immovable jaw, means for temporarily locking the ratchet bar with relation to said frame and adjustable tray clamping means arranged transversely of and secured to said frame.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

ALVIN D. NIEMEYER. 

